What the Brochures Don't Reveal about Undertaking a UK Foundation Year

Looking for a way to fast-track your route to university, to give yourself a second chance after messing up your post-secondary education, or just to test the waters of university life? Then perhaps you’ve been eyeing those foundation-year programmes that UK universities promote so aggressively.

As with many big decisions in life, though, there are plenty of considerations to be made when figuring out if such a programme is right for you. Setting up expectations early, therefore, would do you much good—and I’m here to help!

👋🏻Hi, I’m Anna, a Zoology undergraduate at the University of Bristol! Prior to beginning on my current course of study, I was on a foundation-year programme administered by Kaplan and said university.

Deciding whether or not to undertake the programme was one hell of a ride, and resources available online and at education fairs often seemed all too commercial and bleached. So, with this super short article, I hope to ease YOUR decision process by flagging up some things that the aforementioned promotions tend to keep mum about👀! I will also be throwing in a few tips for those of you who end up choosing to apply!

To Apply or Not To Apply? That is the Headache!

~Finances~

One thing is obvious: unless you snag a scholarship, the tuition will be quite a nightmare! The big question, then, is if the amount you’ll be forking out would be worth what you’ll get in return.

If we are only considering the education you’ll receive, the answer is quite likely to be a no.

A foundation-year programme in the UK can be likened to an easier version of the first year of JC/Poly in Singapore. So, if you are signing up for this after completing your post-secondary education, just know that the bulk of the content will already be (perhaps painfully) familiar to you.

Suppose you’re intending to start right after your O-levels, though. In that case, the content should be rather new (no guarantees, yea…) and your route to securing a graduate job will be significantly shortened, entailing extra salary savings!

Also, you’ll be able to obtain free medication in the UK so long as you are under 18. Perhaps that takes a little out of the pinch🤔?

~Social Life~

Admittedly, there will be few opportunities to make lasting friendships through a foundation course. Most of your coursemates will not end up in the same university as you will for actual undergraduate study, after all.

Furthermore, many foundation year-ers come from insanely wealthy families. So if, like me, you’re lowkey (or highkey) broke, it may be difficult for you to connect with these people. Your core values and attitude towards education might just be too different from theirs.

~Personal Growth~

Being on a foundation-year programme can be quite like taking a gap year, just with some light study—and that could really help you to find yourself!

You get to take time to discover the things you like to do, the study techniques that work best for you, and the ins and outs of adult life (budgeting, travelling, socialising, career planning, etc.)

~Final Verdict~

The extent to which this 1-year course is worth applying to largely depends on which stage of your education you’re currently in, how important building lasting friendships is to you, and whether you see value in taking time to discover yourself while in a different country.

I personally have no regrets about taking it up simply because of how much it has helped me in navigating the subsequent years of my studies (and life more generally)!

Whatever it is, ensure that you are getting yourself into this for good reasons. Do you have an end goal in mind that necessitates an overseas education? If you don’t, I’d advise that you focus on applying to a Singaporean school instead—unless your intended course of study is unavailable on our tiny island!

Okay, I Am Applying! What Now?

~School Choices~

Start by visiting a university fair. This will help you narrow your list much more efficiently than if you search up individual universities or courses online🥵.

Thereafter, do your own research into what the campuses/cities of your choice(s) are like and narrow down further from there. Do not rely solely on the brochures given out! These tend to say little if anything at all about safety, convenience, community, and more. Ask students/alumni whom you know personally or fish out the opinions of strangers online. The underbelly of the internet is also where you can find brutally honest reviews of the accommodation offered🙊!

~Boring and Distressing Stuff~

Unless you are extremely organised, just get an education agency—preferably the admissions partner(s) of your choice school(s)—to help you with your university and visa applications. They should guide you through the required documents very thoroughly and offer a lot of hand-holding as you do up the applications!

Well, enough waffling on my part and more pondering on yours👋🏻!